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I was born and raised on the Rincon reservation in Southern California. They are a neighboring tribe to my tribe, the San Pasqual. There’s a good chance, even if you know about reservation life, mine was not what you would expect.

My parents sheltered the children in our family. I had no idea that my community was struggling with serious issues around diabetes, alcohol and drug use.

ETR is privileged to work with outstanding partners. In fact, one of the best things about working here is the opportunity to collaborate with people and programs whose mission, like ours, is to make a genuine difference.

Today the California Tobacco Control Program (CTCP) is particularly on our minds. We’ve just been awarded a contract to host a statewide coordinating center that will support the American Indian Initiative to Reduce Tobacco-Related Disparities. You can read more about the award here.

We are honored by this opportunity to work with California tribes and the California American Indian population to address the enormous toll smoking takes on this community. The award recognizes ETR’s ten years of work with California’s Sovereign Indian nations supporting communities in their efforts to reduce tobacco use and exposure to secondhand smoke.

It also speaks to the future—one we are all working to improve. I love the way ETR’s Jennifer Geisler, San Pasqual Band of Mission Indians, expressed this sentiment in a recent blog post. She talks about the effort to build healthier communities on reservations. Here are her beautiful words:

This is my home. This is where my kids are growing up. And today, some of the youth I started out teaching are moving into their adult lives and having children of their own.

The health of future generations is one of the most cherished values of native communities. It is an honor to have a chance to share the value of good education and good health among our upcoming generation, and to learn from them how we can best support their success.

Similarly, we are honored to join with CTCP and the advisory committee of Tribal Nation members who represent the four geographical regions of California in learning how we can best support their success in reducing tobacco use and building healthier generations.